Who Gave Away the Treasure in Your Family Tree?

Is generosity is in your genes? I'm going to ask you to search your family tree for someone who gave all they could to help others. But first, let's look at two of the biggest philanthropists of all time. What life occurrences made these two titans of industry so generous?

philanthropist [ fi-lan-thruh-pist ]: a person, typically a wealthy one, who has an altruistic concern for human welfare and shows it by donating money, property, time, or work to aid people in need or to support institutions that serve the public.

Hopkins' Quaker values made it clear where his vast fortune should go.

Quaker Values

Johns Hopkins was born in 1795 and grew up on a tobacco farm as one of 11 children. (His unusual first name comes from from his great grandmother, Margaret Johns.) His family was not poor, but the farm's income wasn't enough for such a large family. Hopkins left home at age 17 to help his uncle run his business.

After an ethical disagreement about alcohol, Hopkins set out on his own. He became a director of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and a bank president. He charged higher interest rates to the wealthy and lower interest rates to the poor.

He wasn't an extravagant man. In fact, when he died of pneumonia in 1873, people joked that he'd been too cheap to buy a winter coat. He had devoted himself to using his wealth and position to help others. He never married—and this is the interesting part to genealogists: He fell in love with his first cousin, and of course they weren't allowed to marry. They chose to remain lifelong friends and never marry anyone.

With no wife or children of his own, he began planning for the distribution of his enormous wealth. He laid the groundwork for Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Hospital.

What do you suppose led this successful Quaker to become a philanthropist? I'll bet it was his close friend's influence and an awareness of the suffering in his city of Baltimore.

He was a good friend of George Peabody whom some have called the father of modern philanthropy. Peabody had to be a role model. Hopkins saw the terrible effects of cholera and yellow fever epidemics in Baltimore. This must have had a deep effect on him based on his 1870 will. In it, he left $7 million dollars (about $168 million today) for the hospital and university. He created scholarships for the poor and an orphanage for African American children. If you're wondering about that last part, he was a slave owner during his life. One would like to think he regretted it.

An Avid Reader

Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland in 1835, earned his massive fortune from scratch. As a boy, he labored in a cotton factory in Pittsburgh. He became a superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad at the age of 24. In his 30s, he began investing in other companies. He sold his Carnegie Steel Company in 1901 for $480 million dollars. That's almost $18 billion today.

That's when Carnegie became a philanthropist. He donated $13 billion in today's money so he might, in his words, "promote the welfare and happiness of the common man". The recipients included:

• the New York Public Library
• the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh (now Carnegie-Mellon University)
• the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
• the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• Carnegie Hall

He once said, "The aim of the millionaire should be, first, to set an example of modest, unostentatious living, shunning display and extravagances." Yet I can't help but notice the increasing number of servants in his household.

Carnegie knew his fortune was meant to serve his fellow man.

In the 1850 census, Carnegie's father was a weaver while 15-year-old Andrew was a clerk. There were no servants. In the 1860 census, Andrew lived with his mother, brother, and a housemaid. The family was beginning to prosper, despite the loss of his father. Andrew was a railroad superintendent. His 14-year-old brother Thomas was a clerk.

Jump ahead to a posh Manhattan home in the 1905 census and Carnegie has 15 servants. In the 1910 and 1915 censuses, he has 21 servants. It's hard to imagine unless you've watched certain British TV shows.

What do you think led this intelligent, self-made man to become a full-time philanthropist? My money's on his working-class background and his belief in the power of education.

When he was a boy, his family couldn't afford to give him a proper education. But a local man made his own library available to working boys in the area. Carnegie was an avid reader, so he paid it forward by donating many library buildings. He provided teachers' pensions by establishing the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA). He was a strong believer in the powers of education.

When Carnegie died, he left his wife and daughter enough money to live in comfort, but not extravagance. His brother Thomas left his fortune to his 9 children. He didn't have the same struggles as Andrew. Andrew was able to pay for his younger brother's education who then followed in his brother's footsteps.

These were the stories of two self-made men. Some philanthropists who inherited their wealth followed the example of their elders. New York's Rockefeller family is one example. The Rockefeller who made his fortune came from humble beginnings. His opportunity for a good education led to his success. His descendants carry on his philanthropic work, and education is one area of their focus.

I'm not aware of anyone in my close family who made a fortune. But I am proud of my 2nd great grandfather Antonio Saviano. In 1890, he became my first immigrant ancestor at the age of 47. When he died in 1925, a ribbon pinned to his chest commemorated his work with a mutual aid society. This society consisted of Italian immigrants making like easier for new arrivals from the old country. He was a hard-working man who rose above the extreme poverty of his hometown. He wanted to help others do the same.

Who were the most generous people in your family tree? You may never have met them. But I'm sure you can piece together enough of their lives to see where their generous spirit came from. The world is better for having people like this.